This invention relates to apparatus of the general class shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,845,535 for inserting wires into the wire receiving portions of contact terminals which are contained in an electrical connector housing. Other prior U.S. patents which are pertinent to the instant invention are: U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,866,296, 3,953,916, and 3,800,390.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,845,535 discloses and claims a wire-inserting and trimming apparatus comprising an insertion press which is removably mounted on a base, the base serving as a fixture for holding the wires and connector during the insertion operation. The base also has fixed shearing edges therein which cooperate with movable shearing edges on the press ram so that the wires are trimmed immediately prior to insertion into the terminals in the connector.
The apparatus shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,845,535 has received favorable comment in the electrical industry and the principles of its design are being increasingly accepted. The instant invention is specifically directed to the achievement of an apparatus of the general class shown in the above-identified patent which can be produced or manufactured at reduced cost and which can be used under a variety of circumstances so that the principle of the invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,845,535 might find more wide-spread application in the electrical industry.
In accordance with the instant invention a relatively simple fixture is provided which has locating means for locating the connector and the wires therein so that the wires will be precisely aligned with the terminals in the connector. Cooperable aligning means are provided on the fixture and on the insertion press for precisely aligning the fixture during movement of the press ram towards the fixture so that the insertion punches on the press ram will engage the wires and move them into the wire receiving portions of the terminals in the connector. During such movement of the ram, the fixture means will be moved very slightly to bring it into the precise alignment required, a feature which precludes the requirement of fixed or permanent aligning means on the fixture and the press.
A further significant feature of the instant invention as compared to the apparatus shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,845,535 is that the fixed shearing means for shearing the wires immediately prior to insertion into the terminals is provided on the press rather than on the fixture. It is thus unnecessary to provide this relatively expensive component, the fixed shear, on the fixture and the fixture can, therefore, be a relatively inexpensive part of the apparatus.
It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide an improved apparatus for inserting wires into the wire-receiving portions of terminals in an electrical connector housing. A further object is to provide a two-part apparatus comprising an improved fixture for wires in a connector and a separate insertion press. A further object is to provide an apparatus having a wire and connector fixture which can be manufactured at an extremely low cost. A further object is to provide an improved apparatus for making electrical harnesses.